Book Signing: Ralph Johnson, FAIA — Architecture in a Rapidly Changing World
Book Signing: Ralph Johnson, FAIA
Architecture in a Rapidly Changing World
Wednesday, November 11, 2026 | 12:00 PM
Temple Hoyne Buell Hall Cafe, 611 Taft Drive, Champaign
The Illinois School of Architecture welcomes alumnus Ralph Johnson, FAIA, Firmwide Design Director at Perkins&Will, for a signing of his new two-volume monograph, Architecture in a Rapidly Changing World (Images Publishing, 2026). Director Francisco Rodríguez-Suárez, FAIA, and Professor Thomas Leslie, FAIA, will open the event.
Born and raised in Chicago, Johnson earned his Bachelor of Architecture at Illinois and his Master of Architecture at Harvard before joining Perkins&Will in 1976. Over five decades his work has ranged from 100 Riverside Plaza in Chicago to the Shanghai Natural History Museum. He was inducted into the National Academy of Design in 2015 and received the AIA Chicago Lifetime Achievement Award in 2022.
The monograph surveys Johnson’s built and unbuilt work from his student years to the present, with an interview and essays by Ned Cramer and Thomas Fisher. Copies will be available for purchase at the event.
This event is free and open to alumni, students and faculty. Food will be provided.
Questions: Please email architecture@illinois.edu.
